The Rule of the Circle, The Rule of the Game 1985

Editor: So, here we have Geta Bratescu’s "The Rule of the Circle, The Rule of the Game" from 1985. It looks like a mixed-media collage using acrylic paint. The composition with its strong geometric shapes, evokes a feeling of fragmented order. What strikes you when you look at this work? Curator: Well, I am drawn to how Bratescu challenges traditional art making through her embrace of diverse materials. The collage element points to a breakdown of the hierarchy between high art and craft. Notice how the grid underlying everything suggests the controlled, almost manufactured support onto which the artistic gesture plays out. Editor: So, you're focusing on the materials and method over the subject matter, then? Curator: Precisely! The juxtaposition of the rigid geometric structure against the more expressive torn elements really underscores a tension inherent to artistic production itself. What commentary do you think she makes by combining painting, collage and the grid support? Editor: I see it now. Maybe the grid acts as a standard –something commercial - and the art resists or negotiates those confines by breaking apart from that underlying structure. I had been focusing more on the colors at first. Curator: Exactly, the materiality reveals the process! Bratescu calls attention to the means by which the image comes into being. This, in turn, makes us question assumptions about originality, skill, and even the definition of art itself. This tension emphasizes a sense of fragmentation, reflecting the social context of its production during a time of great restriction under the Ceaușescu regime. Editor: That really does add another layer to it. I hadn’t thought about the limitations she was negotiating, not just artistic, but political. This artwork gives us so much to reflect on. Curator: Absolutely, the act of making becomes a form of resistance, redefining boundaries of permissible expression.